Standing out from the crowd

Ok, seriously. There are 1million blogs out there. How can we stand out from the crowd? Readers are getting the same thing everytime. My articles has always been copied (with reference) elsewhere. That makes my blog same as others? Do we hold contest? Interviews? Free gifts? What do readers really want so that we can drive more traffic to our blog?

Can somebody comment if my blog is worth readership?______________________________________________________________________________________

Hi there! I'd say that it really boils down to good content. Contests, free gifts etc bring traffic but it doesn't bring readers, if know what I mean. I'd rather people subscribe to my site because they like what I say, not because I gave them an extra entry for doing so.

Can I give you a couple of suggestions for your blog (I'm no blogging pro but I DO have 10 years in marketing communications if that's worth anything!)?
- You have lots of ads within the posts. It makes it a little hard to read because of this.
- Overall there is a lot of text on your site but no pictures (other than ads). Would you consider putting a picture of yourself on a sidebar to add some personalization? I know some people have privacy issues with that but it would help to put a face behind the site.
- What are your goals for the site? What's your passion? I see that most everything is a shareasale link or another affiliate marketing link. It seems you're trying to build a resource for other mommies, right? That's GREAT but I do think it's harder to build a community that way. It seems most of the bloggers who follow others are reading personal stories about kids and motherhood. What I'm trying to say is you may have a much harder time building an audience that way.
- Since your site IS a resource, search engine optimization is KEY. If someone is searching for Reward Chart for example, you'll want to capitalize on that so your site comes up in the google rankings.
- Have you tried commenting on other blogs similar to yours? I find that I've gotten tons of new readers just from visiting blogs and making genuine comments on their blog (not "great post! come visit my blog..." but real comments based on their post.)

- Are you a part of communities like SITS girls and Blog Frog? I love MBC so you've already got that one covered. ;-) I've seen pretty substantial jumps in my traffic just from participating in SITS and BF these last two months.
Anyway, I hope that helps. Good luck!

Mona: I guessed that's what we should do, to be who we are and enjoy what we do! Believe in you!
Melissa: Thanks for your detailed feedback. I really appreciate it! That's why I haven't started on contests. I have more pictures on my previous articles. My goal is to blog about parenting articles and kids crafts which I had given lots of parenting advise acquired from my personal experience for Free. It the same time, i hope to introduce related products which most I had experience myself. That's where you see the affiliate links.

Yes, I believe that commenting on others' blog will bring traffic, but I still prefer being active at forums because there are more readers here. I had just joined SITS and BF. Thanks for referring. Through my blogging journey, I met some or rather few givers who are willing to teach me lots of things about blogging, and you are definitely one of them. Thanks Melissa. :)

You're SO welcome! I enjoy providing feedback to others so it's no prob. :-)

Justina Wang said:

Mona: I guessed that's what we should do, to be who we are and enjoy what we do! Believe in you! Melissa: Thanks for your detailed feedback. I really appreciate it! That's why I haven't started on contests. I have more pictures on my previous articles. My goal is to blog about parenting articles and kids crafts which I had given lots of parenting advise acquired from my personal experience for Free. It the same time, i hope to introduce related products which most I had experience myself. That's where you see the affiliate links.

Yes, I believe that commenting on others' blog will bring traffic, but I still prefer being active at forums because there are more readers here. I had just joined SITS and BF. Thanks for referring. Through my blogging journey, I met some or rather few givers who are willing to teach me lots of things about blogging, and you are definitely one of them. Thanks Melissa. :)

I would love for you to check out Mom Loop on BlogFrog. It is an amazing supportive group of moms that actively visit each other's blogs.

Justina Wang said:

Mona: I guessed that's what we should do, to be who we are and enjoy what we do! Believe in you!Melissa: Thanks for your detailed feedback. I really appreciate it! That's why I haven't started on contests. I have more pictures on my previous articles. My goal is to blog about parenting articles and kids crafts which I had given lots of parenting advise acquired from my personal experience for Free. It the same time, i hope to introduce related products which most I had experience myself. That's where you see the affiliate links.

Yes, I believe that commenting on others' blog will bring traffic, but I still prefer being active at forums because there are more readers here. I had just joined SITS and BF. Thanks for referring. Through my blogging journey, I met some or rather few givers who are willing to teach me lots of things about blogging, and you are definitely one of them. Thanks Melissa. :)